


Like Family

by cazmalfoy



Category: CSI: NY, NCIS
Genre: Family Dynamics, M/M, Strained Relationships
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-04-23
Updated: 2016-04-23
Packaged: 2018-06-03 23:37:06
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,657
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6631684
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/cazmalfoy/pseuds/cazmalfoy
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Tony left home when he was eighteen. The only member of the family he's been in touch with is his brother, Danny, until a tragedy brings them all back together again.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Like Family

“Excuse me?!” Danny Messer exclaimed in a mixture between shock and horror. “The Plague? How the fuck did you manage to catch that?” the New Yorker demanded.   
  
“It wasn’t my fault!” his older half-brother replied, coughing lightly. Danny couldn’t help but flinch at how painful it sounded. “She was just mad and thought her daughter deserved justice for a crime that never even happened. Trouble comes along with the job, you should know that Danny-Boy.”  
  
“But, you nearly died!” Danny argued, leaning against a nearby wall. His emotions were all over the place. He could have lost his brother and he had no idea that anything had even happened.  
  
“Ok, maybe ‘nearly’ was a bit of an exaggeration,” Tony admitted.  
  
“I don’t think it was,” Danny whispered. “You said you were coughing up blood, Tony. In plague victims coughing up blood is one of the first signs that the victim is dying.”  
  
“Don’t you go getting all scientific on me,” Tony replied. “I might not have the science degree that you have but I’m not stupid. I know that blood isn’t a good sign. Maybe I just got lucky.”  
  
“Or you’re stubborn bastard who refuses to go without a fight?” Danny suggested.  
  
“Or I’m a stubborn bastard who refuses to go without a fight,” Tony agreed with a small chuckle. “I’m fine, Danny,” he added, knowing that the younger man was now worrying about him and wanting to reassure him that everything was okay.  
  
“You sure?” Danny asked quietly.  
  
“Positive,” Tony replied. “What about you? How you holding up?” Tony changed the subject.  
  
Danny sighed and ran his hand over his face. The last time that Tony and Danny had spoken to each other was just after the incident with Minhas and before Tony’s brush with the plague. “Okay,” Danny replied. “No one’s really said anything about what happened since then. I’ve got to have a psych evaluation but I’m trying to put if off for as long as possible.”  
  
“Well, you can’t put it off forever,” Tony reminded Danny. “They’re not that bad. You just go, say the right thing and get it over with. It’ll be over before you know it. Trust me.”  
  
“Now you sound like Aiden,” Danny grumbled.  
  
Tony laughed, coughing only a little bit. “Great minds.” Danny rolled his right shoulder and hissed involuntarily at the pain that he felt. “What’s wrong?” Tony asked, immediately picking up on Danny’s discomfort.  
  
“It’s nothing,” Danny replied dismissively.  
  
“Daniel,” Tony said, a warning tone in his voice.   
  
“I told you, it’s nothing,” Danny repeated. “A guy was hit in the stomach by a fastball and it ruptured his spleen. We needed to see how fast the baseball would have to have been travelling and after throwing a few balls at eighty-two miles per hour my arm’s a little sore, that’s all.”  
  
“Eighty-two?” Tony asked. “I think you’re losing your touch, Danny-Boy. Did you stretch before you threw them?”  
  
Danny rolled his eyes. “Yeah, Tony,” he replied sarcastically. “I stripped off my jacket and shirt to stretch in the middle of the garage. There wasn’t really much point, anyway. The balls I threw were nowhere near fast enough.”  
  
“You know you shouldn’t even have thrown them in the first place,” Tony reminded him. Danny could tell that there was no arguing with him - Tony was in complete protective big brother mode and there was no way that Danny could hope to win an argument against him. “You should get your shoulder checked out if it still hurts.”  
  
“I’ll be fine,” Danny assured him. “It’s bound to ache a little. Yesterday was the first time I’ve pitched in about ten years.”  
  
Danny could tell that Tony was frowning on the other end of the line. “If it still hurts in a few days promise me you’ll go get it checked out,” Tony finally said.  
  
“You mean like you did when you twisted your knee a few years ago?” Danny smirked.   
  
“That was different,” Tony argued.  
  
“You’re right. You weren’t going against what doctors told you and throwing baseballs. What was it you did again?” Danny asked before he answered his own question. “Oh, yeah. You did what the doctors told you not to do and tackled a suspect who was twice your size. Then you refused to go to the doctors when you could barely walk two days later.”  
  
“Just promise me you’ll get it checked if it still hurts, smart ass,” Tony sighed.  
  
Danny laughed and rolled his eyes. “I promise,” he swore. “How long have you been ordered to rest for?” he asked.  
  
“Three weeks,” Tony replied. “But you know I’ll be back to work in…”  
  
“Two,” Danny finished for him. “Yeah, I know. Just be careful, okay?” he begged. “I don’t want a call from Gibbs telling me that you’ve been blown up or something.”  
  
“I won’t get blown up,” Tony said. “Gibbs would kill me if I died,” he chuckled.  
  
Danny shook his head, a small smile on his face as he said goodbye to Tony and put the phone down.  
  
Danny sighed and glanced at his watch. It was getting late and he had promised his mother that he would stop by his parents’ house on his way out with his colleague and friend, Don Flack. It had been a couple of months since Danny had seen his mother and he felt that he owed it to her to see how she was. Danny’s father was away on business, his mother had called saying she felt lonely and wanted to see the only one of her sons that still lived in New York.  
  
It took Danny what felt like ages to drive from his apartment to the Messer’s house on Staten Island. His mom, Clara, was ecstatic when she opened her front door and saw Danny standing on the doorstep. She immediately ushered Danny into the house and set about making some tea for them to drink while they spoke.  
  
While Danny was waiting for her to come back into the sitting room, he allowed his gaze to wander towards the piano that was in the corner.  
  
Danny got to his feet and headed across the room. On top of the piano were dozens of photographs. Many of them were of Danny or his younger brother, Louie. There wasn’t one single picture of the Messer’s oldest son, Anthony Junior.  
  
Tony's mom, Juliana DiNozzo, had been killed when Tony was barely two weeks old. Six months after Juliana's death Anthony Messer had remarried. Shortly after, Danny had been born, followed five years later by Louie. The absence of photograph’s for Tony didn't surprise Danny in the slightest.   
  
Just after Tony had graduated high school, Tony had announced to his family that he didn’t want to take up the accountancy degree that his father had in mind. Tony’s decision had resulted in the loudest argument Danny had ever over-heard. Both Anthony’s had a fiery Italian temper and both were just as stubborn as each other.  
  
Tony had stormed up to the room he and Danny shared and started packing his things. When Danny asked where he was going, Tony had replied that he was sick of Anthony trying to live his life for him and he wasn’t going to take it anymore.   
  
At the time Danny had been a few months shy of his sixteenth birthday and Tony, who was a little under two years older than Danny, had been his best friend. Danny had begged Tony not to go, trying to convince him that their father was just surprised and would change his mind eventually and accept Tony’s decision - even though both young men knew that was probably never going to happen.  
  
Tony left a few hours after his and Anthony’s argument. He promised Danny that he would meet him after baseball practice the next day, just like always. Tony had never broken a promise that he made to Danny. Even now that they were adults and lived in different states, Tony still kept any promise he made to his younger brother.  
  
Clara re-entered the room, breaking Danny out of his memories of the past. “We practically had to tie you down to get you to sit still long enough for those pictures to be taken,” she commented, setting the tray down on the coffee table.  
  
“Louie was worse that I was!” Danny defended himself as he sat down and accepted the tea cup Clara was thrusting into his hands.  
  
Every time Danny was visiting the house he had grown up in, Danny wanted to tell them how Tony was. But Danny knew better than to even mention Tony’s name in the Messer’s house. After Tony had left, Danny had come home early from baseball practice and overheard Anthony instructing Clara to get rid of everything that belonged to Tony. Anthony was so mad at Tony for behaving so disrespectfully that he wanted all evidence of him wiping from the house.  
  
Clara had raised Tony - as well as Danny and Louie - and considered him her own son and she hadn’t been able to bring herself to destroy the remainder of Tony’s things and, instead, brought them to Danny for him to dispose of. No one in the family knew that Danny was still in contact with his older brother. Danny hid the entire box underneath his bed, inside a large trunk that he kept locked at all times. He knew that no one would suspect a thing, everyone in the house knew that Danny had always kept his most private things in there and no one would dare look.  
  
As Danny listened to Clara talking about how she wished that Louie would visit town more often, he found himself laughing internally at the irony of the situation. Clara was pretending that Tony never existed and she told Danny on more than one occasion that Danny was her favourite son. Every time she brought that up, Danny couldn’t help wondering what she would think if she knew that her favourite son was still in touch with Tony and was planning on taking a vacation with him in a few months time.  
  
~  
  
Danny stalked down the corridor, his boots echoing loudly with step each step he took. It hadn’t taken much to convince the guard to let him in to see Tony. He had merely flashed the guard his badge and he had been able to pass.   
  
Tony didn’t look up as Danny approached the holding cell, he merely continued staring up at the ceiling. “I never thought I’d see you behind bars,” Danny commented. Tony sat bolt upright, his eyes wide as he saw Danny on the other side of the bars. “Now Louie I would expect it from, but definitely not you.”  
  
“How did you even know?” Tony asked, folding his legs underneath him.  
  
“I tried to call you on your cell and Gibbs answered, told me where you were. But he didn’t tell me why my big brother is in a holding cell,” Danny answered.  
  
“This,” Tony indicated to the cell around him, “is not my fault. Fornell’s only put me in here so that he can look like he’s done the right thing.”  
  
Danny leant forward, resting his hands on the bars. “Why does he think that he needs to do the right thing? What the Hell’s going on here, Tony?” Danny demanded.  
  
Tony shrugged his shoulders. “I’m damned if I know, Danny-Boy,” he admitted. “A pair of legs were found with my teeth marks on them, my blood on them and a glove was found with my finger print inside it. Which makes it look like I’m the one that killed the woman.”  
  
Danny remained silent, just watching Tony. Tony saw the hesitant look that Danny was giving him and jumped up. “Danny, you believe me that I didn’t do it, don’t you?” he asked desperately, stepping closer to Danny.  
  
Tony thought that Danny was going to back away from the bars, as if he was afraid of him, but, to Tony’s relief, Danny didn’t budge. “Of course, I do,” Danny replied firmly. “You couldn’t kill your worst enemy let alone some woman you barely know.” Tony sighed with relief. “Why would someone want to frame you?” Danny asked.  
  
Tony shrugged his shoulders, sliding down so that he was sat on the floor, leaning back against the bars. “Who wouldn’t?” he countered as Danny mirrored Tony’s actions and sitting down on the floor as well, so that if it weren’t for the bars they would be sat back to back. “When you’ve worked in law enforcement for as long as I have, you tend to make a few enemies.”  
  
“And when you add all the ex-girlfriends, there’s kinda a lot of suspects,” Danny agreed.  
  
“I don’t have that many ex-girlfriends,” Tony argued. Danny snorted with laughter. “Okay, there are a few,” Tony admitted. “But you’ve had your fair share as well. How many girlfriends have you got now?”  
  
“One.”  
  
“One?” Tony repeated in surprise.  
  
“Julia,” Danny replied. “I got bored of Annie.”  
  
Tony laughed and shook his head. “Oh god,” he groaned when his stomach growled. “Why couldn’t you have brought a pizza with you?” he asked, bashing his head lightly against the bars that were behind him. “I’m starving.”  
  
“I’m sorry,” Danny rolled his eyes. “I was worried about my big brother and forgot to bring you some junk food for you to feed your enormous appetite. How inconsiderate of me.”  
  
“Don’t worry about me,” Tony replied, scrunching his eyes up as they started to sting. “Gibbs’ll kill everyone who gets in his way if they try to keep me in here. Oh crap,” he muttered, when the stinging in his eyes worsened.  
  
“Here,” Danny said, passing something through the bars to Tony.  
  
Tony turned his head and saw that Danny was holding his glasses case. “How did you…”  
  
“I stopped by your apartment on the way here,” Danny told him. “I know you don’t like wearing them but figured the last thing you needed right now was a headache due to eye strain.”  
  
“You know me too well,” Tony smirked, opening the case and pulling out his glasses.  
  
“You’re not the only one who doesn’t like wearing glasses,” Danny replied, pushing his own further up his nose. “You’re just lucky that you don’t need them all the time.”  
  
~  
  
Danny splashed some cold water on his face in an attempt to cool himself down. Danny wasn’t claustrophobic but the temperature in the room was starting to become unbearable and the rapidly decaying corpse didn’t help matters either.  
  
Danny put his glasses back on and looked at his reflection in the mirror. He was startled out of his thoughts about how tired he looked when his cell phone started ringing in the other room.  
  
Danny went into the other room and grabbed the phone. He was expecting it to be Louie again. Ever since Louie had left a message of Danny’s answering machine the youngest Messer had been inundating Danny will calls, all of which Danny had been able to avoid so far.  
  
The New Yorker was surprised when he saw Tony’s name flashing up on the caller display. “Tony?” he asked, flipping the phone open and putting it to his ear.  
  
“Hey,” Tony replied. “I’m bored,” Tony stated matter-of-factly.  
  
“You’re bored?” Danny repeated.  
  
“Yup,” Tony sighed. “What are you doing?” he asked.  
  
“Me?” Danny looked at the panic room around him. “Well, I got called out to a scene this morning - after getting a message from Louie - and the dead guy was a nutcase who barricaded himself inside a panic room. Me, like the idiot I am, pressed what I thought was the light switch but was actually the panic button. And now I’m trapped in here, waiting for some guy to cut a new door while Stella and Flack get to interrogate the suspects without me.”  
  
There was silence on the other end of the line as Tony tried to register what Danny had just said. “You- What?” Tony asked. “You’re trapped? In a panic room?”  
  
“Yeah,” Danny sighed, removing his glasses again and pinching the bridge of his nose. “I swear, if there’s ever a reason not to press unmarked switches, this would be it.”  
  
Tony whistled. “It’s a good job you’re not claustrophobic,” he said. “All you have to do is sit back and wait for them to get you out.”  
  
“Well, not really. I’ve gotta process the scene - without a kit, I might add - before any evidence gets lost. And being trapped with a dead body is gross,” he scrunched his nose up in disgust.  
  
“You’re trapped with the - the body?” Tony repeated in surprise.  
  
“I just said that, didn’t I?” Danny snapped. “I’m sorry,” he whispered after a moment.  
  
“You said Louie called?” Tony asked, changing the subject off of Danny’s current situation in the panic room.  
  
“Yeah,” Danny sighed. “I don’t know why. I haven’t spoken to him in two years and suddenly he just calls me up out of the blue, tells me he’s back in New York and he was wondering if I wanted to grab a beer after work.”  
  
“What did you tell him?” Tony questioned.  
  
“Nothing,” Danny shrugged. “He left a message and I’ve been avoiding his calls ever since.”  
  
“Why?” Tony asked curiously.  
  
“Because I know what he wants,” Danny answered.  
  
“To see his brother?” Tony suggested.  
  
“He’s either in trouble or he wants money,” Danny said. “I just know it.”  
  
"There's no way you could know that from an answering machine message," Tony argued. "I know he got into trouble when he was younger, but you are his brother. Even if he is in trouble, shouldn't you at least hear him out?" he asked quietly.  
  
Danny sighed and rested the palm of his hand against his forehead. But he was saved from answering when a quiet beeping told him he had another incoming call. "Tone, I gotta go," he said softly. "I'll call you when I get out of here."  
  
~  
  
Danny walked out into the bullpen, his NCIS visitors pass dangling from the pocket on his jeans. It was only the third time he had visited the place that his big brother worked but the woman behind the reception desk recognised him from the two previous times he had visited. She didn’t even ask if he required an escort to Tony’s desk.  
  
Tony’s desk was empty when Danny arrived in the bullpen. He had no idea where his older brother was so he decided that he would sit down and wait for him.  
  
There was a woman sitting at the desk that used to be Kate Todd’s. Danny knew that she had recently been killed, shot right in front of Tony. Danny also knew that the black haired woman was Officer Ziva David.  
  
“Can I help you?” she asked, looking up and seeing Danny walking towards Tony’s desk.  
  
“No,” Danny shook his head. “It’s okay,” he replied, “I’m just waiting for Tony.” He nodded in McGee’s direction as he sat down behind Tony’s desk. McGee returned the nod with one of his own before continuing with his work.  
  
“And you are?” Ziva asked, getting up and walking around her own desk.  
  
“Daniel Messer,” a male voice interrupted.  
  
Danny jumped up in surprise and looked up to see Special Agent Jethro Gibbs standing a few feet away. “Does all your family do that?” Gibbs smirked, stepping up to Danny and shaking his hand.  
  
“It’s just you that makes us do it, sir,” Danny grinned.  
  
“Don’t call me ‘sir’,” Gibbs instructed.  
  
“Sorry, Gibbs,” Danny nodded.  
  
“Gibbs?” Ziva interrupted. “You two know each other?” she asked.  
  
“Of course I do,” Gibbs rolled his eyes. “Danny this is Ziva David. Officer David this is Danny Messer, NYPD.”  
  
“What business does the NYPD have at NCIS?” Ziva demanded.  
  
“Going on vacation with his big brother, I would imagine,” Gibbs said, shrugging his jacket off and sitting down behind his own desk.  
  
“Brother?” Ziva asked in confusion, turning to look at Danny.  
  
“I tried to tell you,” Danny rolled his eyes, sitting back down and putting his feet up on the desk. “I’m waiting for Tony.”  
  
“Tony?” Ziva repeated. “Your brother?” Danny nodded his head. “That’s ridiculous. Tony’s name’s DiNozzo, not Messer.”  
  
“DiNozzo’s his mom’s maiden name,” Gibbs replied, his eyes glued on his computer screen.  
  
“He's my half-brother actually,” Tony added, stepping into the bullpen. He scowled at Danny and knocked his feet off of his desk.  
  
Danny glared at him as he tried to prevent himself from falling off of the chair. “You ready to go?” Danny asked, leaning back in the chair and looking up at Tony.  
  
“Yeah,” Tony replied, reaching under the table and grabbing his backpack.  
  
Tony wasn’t paying attention to where Gibbs was until the former Marine slapped him on the back of his head. “Don’t correct me again,” Gibbs instructed.  
  
“Sorry boss,” Tony apologized automatically.  
  
Danny laughed at the pout on Tony’s face. “Let’s go,” he said, getting up off of the chair. “It was nice seeing you again, Gibbs,” Danny said, shaking Gibbs’ hand once more.  
  
“You too, Danny,” Gibbs smiled. “Remember, if you ever get bored of the NYPD…”  
  
Danny grinned, “I know,” he nodded. “I’ll keep it in mind,” he assured Gibbs. “It was nice meeting you, Officer David,” Danny said, looking at Ziva. “McGee,” he nodded to the younger man who was still working at his desk.  
  
McGee waved goodbye as Danny turned to leave the bullpen. Before Danny got two steps away from Gibbs he felt a slap on the back of his head. “What was that for?” Danny demanded, spinning around on his heel and looking at Gibbs, rubbing the back of his head.  
  
“Laughing at him,” Gibbs pointed to Tony, “and putting your feet on the furniture,” Gibbs shrugged, with a smirk on his face. “Are you going to get going or do you want me to find more work for you to do?” he asked, turning to Tony.  
  
“I’m going! I’m going!” Tony replied, grabbing hold of Danny’s arm and dragging him towards the elevator.  
  
“Does he hit you that hard?” Danny asked, still rubbing the back of his head as they got in the elevator.  
  
“Who? Gibbs?” Tony asked. He shook his head. “He usually hits me harder. I think it’s Gibbs’ way of showing affection.”  
  
Danny laughed and rolled his eyes as the doors opened onto the basement garage where Tony parked his car. “Ziva asks loads of questions,” Danny commented, opening the passenger door and climbing in.  
  
“Well, to her you’re a stranger and she wanted to know who you were,” Tony shrugged, starting the car and pulling out of the garage. “Where’s your suitcase?” Tony asked, realising that Danny didn’t have any luggage with him.  
  
“I got a cab from the airport and dumped my stuff at your apartment,” Danny replied.  
  
“How did you get in?” Tony questioned.  
  
“I picked the lock. How do you think I got in?” Danny rolled his blue eyes. “You gave me a key about three years ago,” he reminded Tony.  
  
“Did I?” Tony asked in surprised. Danny nodded his head. “Are you sure?” he questioned.  
  
Somehow Danny managed to pull his keys out of his pocket and hold them up. “See?” he said.  
  
“Well, my memory must be fading because I don’t remember giving you that,” Tony muttered.  
  
“Well, you are getting old,” Danny nodded his head, scowling at Tony as he swatted Danny on the arm.  
  
“If I’m getting old then what does that make you, Danny-Boy?” Tony asked.  
  
“Younger than you,” Danny smirked, causing Tony to roll his eyes.  
  
~  
  
Danny looked up from the gravestone that he was standing by. Anthony Messer Senior had been killed in car crash almost a week before and they had just buried him.  
  
There was a small group around him mostly there was family, including Clara and Louie, and friends.  
  
Danny could feel someone's eyes on him. Danny glanced around and spotted someone he never thought he would see standing at the back of the small group.  
  
Danny excused himself and made his way though the crowd towards Tony. Danny had called Tony to tell him that Anthony was dead but he never thought Tony would turn up back in New York.  
  
"Tony?" he asked in surprise when he reached him.  
  
"Hey," Tony whispered through his tears. The eldest Messer reached out and pulled Danny into his arms.  
  
Danny sighed and leant into Tony's embrace, burying his face in Tony's shoulder as tears started to fall. "I thought you weren't going to come," he mumbled.  
  
"I wasn't going to," Tony admitted, holding onto Danny tightly. "But he was my dad and I couldn't let you go through today on your own."  
  
Danny grinned at him. "Thanks," he whispered.  
  
"Danny?" Clara asked in surprise from behind Danny.  
  
Danny quickly pulled away from Tony and turned to face Clara, who wasn't looking at him. Clara's gaze was firmly fixed on Tony. "Mom," Danny started to say, although he had no idea what he was going to say.  
  
"Junior?" Clara whispered, stepping closer to Tony tentatively.  
  
Tony nervously nodded his head. He knew that he looked exactly like his father and thus was easily recognizable to Clara. Tony didn't know how Clara was going to react to seeing him there, but her pulling him into her arms was definitely not what the Special Agent had been expecting.  
  
"I am so sorry for what happened," Clara whispered, tears falling as she embraced Tony. "For everything."  
  
Danny watched as Tony's defences softened and eventually fell. When Tony had left he had become so dead set against the rest of the family that for a long time it wasn't wise to mention them. But Danny could tell that the sight of the woman who raised him was enough to break through the walls Tony had built.  
  
"Mom," Tony whispered, resting his cheek against Clara's head. "I missed you. So much."  
  
Danny lifted his head as Louie joined them. "Is that..." the youngest Messer trailed off as Tony looked up at him. "Tony?" he asked in surprise.  
  
"Hey, kiddo," Tony gave him a watery smile.  
  
"Tony!" Louie exclaimed, throwing his arms around Tony. "Where have you been?" Louie asked, hugging Tony.  
  
"Here and there," Tony shrugged. "Ohio, Peoria, Philadelphia, Baltimore, DC."   
  
"How did you know where we were?" Clara asked, as she looped her arm around Tony's.  
  
"You know," Tony shrugged, not wanting to tell them truth and possibly get Danny in to trouble.  
  
"I told him," Danny admitted quietly from where he was standing. "I have a confession," he added, "I never got rid of his things. I've been keeping in touch with Tony ever since he left."  
  
"Why didn't you say anything?" Clara asked quietly, stepping away from Tony and stopping in front of Danny.  
  
"I told him not to," Tony answered for his best friend. "I knew that you hated me and didn't want Danny to suffer because of me."  
  
"We never hated you, Junior," Clara whispered, shaking her head. "Your father was disappointed that you didn't want to continue on the family business but he never hated you."  
  
"Then why did he kick off when I told him that I wanted to pursue sports? Danny told him the same thing and it was perfectly okay for him!"  
  
Danny shifted uncomfortably. Him being allowed to play sports had always been a touchy subject with Tony. While the older man had never resented Danny personally, he hated how there had been one rule for himself and another for Danny.  
  
"I don't know," Clara admitted. "A couple of years after you left, your father admitted to me that he was wrong for kicking off like he did. But, since we had no idea where you were there was no way to get in touch with you and for him to apologize. Had we known where you were," Clara trailed off, shaking her head as tears fell.  
  
Tony moved towards Clara and wrapped his arms around her. "Shh, mom," he whispered. "I'm here now."  
  
"You should be hating us but yet here you are," Clara sobbed in Tony's shoulder.  
  
"I've had a long time to hate you guys," Tony admitted. "But I'm an adult now. It's in the past."  
  
Clara smiled and kissed Tony on the cheek. "How long are you in town for?" she asked.  
  
"A few days," Tony replied, taking Clara's arm and leading her back towards Danny's car. "I couldn't get that long off work at such short notice."  
  
"Where do you work?" Louie asked curiously, opening the front passenger door for his mother.  
  
"NCIS," Tony replied. "The Naval Criminal Investigation Service," he added at Clara and Louie's confused looks.  
  
"Oh God, another investigator," Louie smirked at Danny and he climbed into to the backseat with Tony.  
  
"Except I'm not as good at science as Danny-Boy here," Tony said.  
  
"Of course you're not," Danny grinned, looking at Tony in the rear-view mirror.  
  
~  
  
Tony DiNozzo was humming to himself as he shut down his computer and grabbed his things. "You're happy," Gibbs commented. He and Tony were the last to leave the bullpen. Tony thought that he'd be surprised if Gibbs even left for the holidays. "What are you doing for the holidays?" Gibbs asked.  
  
"Going to New York," Tony replied.  
  
"To spend Christmas with Danny," Gibbs nodded his head.  
  
"And my mom and youngest brother, Louie," Tony added. Gibbs looked up at him. "We met again after my dad's funeral," Tony explained. "They've invited me up to spend the holidays."  
  
Gibbs gave him a rare smile. "Good for you, DiNozzo. Good for you."  
  
Tony grinned at him and grabbed his backpack. "Merry Christmas, boss!" he chirped as he headed towards the elevator.  
  
~  
  
As Tony pulled up outside the Messer's house he felt butterflies flutter in his stomach. It had been over twenty-five years since he had stepped foot inside the family home and he wasn't sure what to expect.  
  
Tony climbed out of the car and shivered at the temperature. He pulled his thick coat around him tighter and headed up the path.   
  
Danny was waiting for him on the porch, he was wearing an equally thick jacket and gloves. "Hey," he greeted as Tony walked up the stairs.  
  
Tony grinned at him. "What are you doing out here?" he asked, shivering at the temperature again.  
  
"Waiting for you," Danny shrugged.  
  
"Well, you idiot, get inside," Tony instructed, "it's freezing out here. Damn New York winters," he muttered, following Danny inside.  
  
As soon as Tony stepped over the threshold he was whisked back to the Christmases when he was a teenager. The house was warm and dimly lit, creating a cosy environment. The scent of turkey roasting lingered in the air, complimented by the smell of Clara's special recipe stuffing.  
  
"Ma!" Danny shouted as Tony closed the door and they both peeled off their jackets.  
  
Clara came out of the kitchen, wearing an apron around her waist. "Junior!" she exclaimed, hugging Tony tightly. "Did you make it okay?" Tony nodded his head. "You must be freezing! Go into the sitting room and get warm. Danny, why don't you get your brother a drink?" Clara asked.  
  
"He's a big boy!" Danny retorted. "The liqueur cabinet hasn't moved in my entire life. He should know where it is." Clara glared at him and he lifted his hands in defence. "Fine," he sighed, following Tony into the sitting room.  
  
Both Tony and Danny chuckled when they heard Clara scolding Louie for sampling the stuffing before it was ready to be unveiled.   
  
Danny crossed the room and opened his father's liqueur cabinet. He poured two drinks, handed one to Tony and sat down on the couch next to him.  
  
"It's just like I remember," Tony whispered, sipping the whiskey Danny had poured him. "The only thing that's changed is that dad's not here," he added softly.  
  
"Not everything's the same," Danny argued.   
  
Tony looked at him questioningly and Danny pointed over to the piano. Tony got to his feet and headed over to where Danny was pointing.   
  
Tony's eyes widened in surprise when he saw that not only were they pictures of Danny and Louie, but there were also several of Tony.  
  
"Where did these come from?" Tony asked, picking up a picture of himself at his Graduation from Ohio State.  
  
"I got copies of some pictures and gave them to her," Danny told him, shrugging his shoulders.  
  
Tony smiled back at him and set the picture back down. Tony laughed as he pressed a couple of keys on the piano. "God, I haven't played in years," he murmured, sitting down and tentatively playing 'twinkle, twinkle, little star'.  
  
"A nursery rhyme?" Danny asked, chuckling to himself.  
  
Tony shrugged and got to his feet again. "It's the only thing I can remember the notes for," he replied.  
  
Danny shook his head in amusement. Clara entered the room, followed by Louie who was carrying a tray with four cups of eggnog.  
  
"Was that you playing?" Louie asked Tony, setting the tray down on the coffee table.  
  
Tony nodded his head, grabbing a cup for himself. "I can't remember much. Haven't played in years."  
  
"You were such a good player," Clara reminisced, moving to the stereo and pressing play. Soft Christmas ballads began to sound from the speakers. "You were the only one that would concentrate long enough to practice. Unlike you two," Clara turned to face Danny and Louie who were looking away innocently.  
  
Tony laughed and settled back into his chair as he listened to Louie and Danny bickering with each other about who was the worst piano player. For the first time in a long time it felt like he had someone other than Danny in his family and he found that he had actually missed that feeling.


End file.
